As Art Market Soars, So Do Questions Of Oversight

Why Is Chandelier Bidding Such A Big Problem?
(FILES) In this file picture taken on November 30, 2012 members of staff pose with a drawing by Italian artist Raphael entitled 'Head of a Young Apostle' at Sotheby's auction house in central London . A drawing by Italian artist Raphael entitled 'Head of a Young Apostle' fetched GBP 29.7 Million (36.55 Milliion Euros, 47.79 Million USD) at auction in London on December 5, 2012. AFP PHOTO / CARL COURT (Photo credit should read CARL COURT/AFP/Getty Images)
(FILES) In this file picture taken on November 30, 2012 members of staff pose with a drawing by Italian artist Raphael entitled 'Head of a Young Apostle' at Sotheby's auction house in central London . A drawing by Italian artist Raphael entitled 'Head of a Young Apostle' fetched GBP 29.7 Million (36.55 Milliion Euros, 47.79 Million USD) at auction in London on December 5, 2012. AFP PHOTO / CARL COURT (Photo credit should read CARL COURT/AFP/Getty Images)

When some of the world's richest people gather for the glittering New York auction season this spring, they will spend hundreds of millions of dollars in an art market that allows opaque transactions and has few outside monitors.

At major auctions the first bids announced for a piece are typically fictional -- numbers pulled from the air by the auctioneer to jump-start bidding.

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